One of the organizations in NASA’s Private Sector Small Constellation Satellite Data Product Pilot program, Planet, has several satellite constellations including Dove. Two of the Dove small satellites are shown here deploying from the International Space Station.

Credits: NASA

NASA has launched a pilot program to evaluate how Earth science data from commercial small-satellite constellations could supplement observations from the agencys fleet of orbiting Earth science missions. On Sept. 28, the agency awarded sole-source contracts to acquire test data sets from three private sector organizations.

NASAs Earth Science Division in Washington issued blanket purchase agreements for the Private Sector Small Constellation Satellite Data Product Pilot program. Under these agreements, the agency purchases data sets and related products based on observations derived from Earth-orbiting, small-satellite constellations designed and operated by non-governmental entities.

This pilot program is an innovative and efficient way for us to acquire, examine, and evaluate a wide range of private sector Earth observation data, said Michael Freilich, director of NASAs Earth Science Division. As our very capable NASA research satellite fleet ages and more small satellites are launched by private industry, there are opportunities to leverage the strengths of each into even more complete climate data sets.

NASA will provide the test data products to NASA-funded researchers, who will examine whether the data help advance the agencys science and applications development goals. The pilot program is designed to determine whether these private sector observations and associated products offer a cost-effective means to augment or complement the suite of Earth observations acquired directly by NASA, other U.S. government agencies, and international partners.

Planet, headquartered in San Francisco, has three satellite constellations (SkySat, Dove, RapidEye) with more than 150 satellites supplying imagery and derived products over the entire Earth at medium and high resolution with high repeat frequencies.

SPIRE, headquartered in San Francisco, operates a constellation of over 60 satellites collecting radio occultation soundings, aircraft location information and ship reports. GPS radio occultation measurements can be used to sound the atmosphere for temperature, water vapor, and atmospheric pressure.

These contracts represent the first time that NASA has engaged with commercial small-satellite constellation operators to purchase their data for scientific evaluation. They establish a way for NASA to acquire and examine the data products during the next 12 months. Each contract includes an option for NASA to extend the agreement for an additional four years, for a total value of up to $7 million for each of the three agreements.

To be considered for participation in this pilot program, companies had to demonstrate they were currently operating a small satellite constellation of no fewer than three satellites in non-geostationary orbit and producing consistent global coverage. Companies also were asked to supply a comprehensive catalog of their data, describing areal coverage, data latency, pricing, and other factors.

NASA uses the vantage point of space to understand and explore our home planet, improve lives and safeguard our future. The agencys observations of Earths complex natural environment are critical to understanding how our planets natural resources and climate are changing now and could change in the future.

Well, unlike many news organisations, we have no sponsors, no corporate or ideological interests. We don't put up a paywall – we beleive in free public access to information.
Although underresourced & primarily volunteer-based, we endeavour to provide the community with real-time access to true unfiltered news directly from the firsthand sources.
Our goal and mission is to provide free and alternative access to impartial information, fighting media monopolization and adhering to honesty, neutrality, fairness, transparency and independence in collection and dissemination of information.
It is a bumpy road with all sorties of difficulties.
(Media ownership in Australia is one of the most concentrated in the world (more on this!). Since the trend of consolidation is and has historically been upward, fewer and fewer individuals or organizations control increasing shares of the mass media in our country. According to independent assessment, about 98% of the media sector is held by three conglomerates. This tendency is not only totally unacceptable, but also to a degree frightening). Learn more
We can only achieve this goal together. Our website is open to any citizen journalists and organizations who want to contribute, publish high-quality insights or send media releases to improve public access to impartial information. You and we have the right to know, learn, read, hear what and how we deem appropriate.
If you like what we do & would like to buy us a coffee (or lots of coffees), please know it's greatly appreciated.
All donations are kept completely private and confidential.Thank you very much in advance!

Mirage News . All timestamps on this site are AEST/AEDT and all times in the articles are local times unless indicated otherwise.

All trademarks and rights are owned by their respective owners. All content is used for news reporting purposes.
For news reporting purposes, we rely on fair use (fair dealing) [1] [2] for textual and media content to keep the public informed on the developments. If you are a person mentioned in the story or you are a copyright holder and believe that any content should be removed, revised or taken down, please contact us. View the disclaimer page here

Follow us on Facebook!

Thank you very much for your visit.
Please follow us on Facebook by simply clicking the Facebook Like button above.
We know "information overload" is one of the biggest irritations in modern life and it is not easy to get on top of so much news coming from everywhere.
We pick top stories to keep you in the loop.
Thanks for your support.